Casualties of War
by Ebola
Summary: Fanfic based on Ebola by William T. Close and The Hot Zone by Richard Preston. Mayinga and Pierre are put in quarantine. RR Please!


A/N: This is a fanfic with people from the book Ebola, and that's what the situation is based off of, however, Mayinga is mentioned in The Hot Zone as well..just letting you know it's the same person. This is not actually what happens in the book, I changed it quite a bit, and elaborated. :D Rated T...for...sadness...? I can't say or I'll give away the end.

It was three days after the sick nun had arrived at the Ngalemia Hospital. One day since she died. Sister Theofila had given all workers-and visitors-a blood test for any strange virus. Unfortunatley, a doctor and investegator from France, Pierre Burine, and one of Theofila's best nurses, Mayinga N'Seka, had tested positive for a virus called Marburg-at least that's what they thought it was, whatever it was, they would both be dead in a week after their symptoms began, and it was highly contagious.

She had no choice but to put them in a quarentine.

She sighed. How blatantly horrible! She had to sentence a visitor to the country and one of her good friends to death. And she had to do it now. Theofilia immediatley called the two workers into her office. She looked down at her desk for a moment.

"What is it, Theo?" Mayinga asked. The nun lifted her head, and, calmly as she could, explained.

Pierre and Mayinga looked at eachother, unable to to really take in what she had just said.

"The rest of my life-in a different country, locked up in a room, all alone?" Pierre exclaimed.

"Pierre...I'm so sorry...but...well..since you and Mayinga have the same illness..you could share a room...I suppose..."

"Small comfort." Mayinga turned away from her friends, holding back tears. "I'm sorry, Theofila, I'm not taking this as well as I should..."

"I understand...you of all people are justified..." Theofila walked over and embraced her friend. "I wish it didn't have to be this way."

"Thank you, my friend. If you got the fever from me just now, you can share our room.." she smiled weakly.

Theofila returned the smile. "Room 20 is empty, would you like that one?"

"Alright," Pierre nodded. "Come to visit us...if you find the time."

"Of course I will."

The French doctor took the Zairian nurse by the hand and they walked to the room that, as far as they could see, would be the last place they'd ever go.

That night after all of the staff had gone home, all that could be heard would be the heartbreaking sound of Mayinga quietly crying herself to sleep.

"Don't cry, Mayinga..." Pierre whispered softly. He got up and sat down on the chair near her bed.

"Why did this happen? I was going to go to school in America in a week...I had my whole life ahead of me. I'm going to die.." her voice was trembling. "I'm twenty-two and I'm going to die right here.."

"You can't think that way. You have to think of the people of Yambuku-a few of them have recovered. If you take care of yourself...you could survive, too." he gently put his hand over hers. "And you aren't in this alone, either. I'm going to stick around for you, I don't want to be alone any more than you do."

She turned slightly and looked into his eyes. He was the only person left she could even come in contact with-there was a connection between them that had not been there before. Pierre looked back at her. "You are right," she said to her friend. "that we aren't in this alone." she sighed and closed her eyes for a moment. "I'm not showing symptoms yet...are you?"

"No. In any number of days, though..." he sighed heavily. "We should get some sleep. It's probably very late."

Mayinga sat up in her bed, and she embraced her friend tightly. "I'm scared..." she shivered slightly, simply out of fear and hopelessness. "We will take care of eachother, right?"

"Of course we will, dear.." Pierre said quietly.

The following morning, Theofila came in with her gloves and mask to bring them breakfast and see how they were doing.

"We aren't showing any symptoms yet," Pierre said, as cheerfully as he could.

"True, but...I don't feel like eating." Mayinga said.

"Why not? You do want to get better-" Theo was cut off.

"What's the point, Theo?" Mayinga looked down and sighed. "You'd better get back to work..I don't want to hold you up."

Theofila looked at the girl in dismay. She had never seen her like this-Mayinga was always so happy and confident. She began asking herself, _Why?_

"Alright, if that's what you want me to do..I wish you both well." Theo left the food on the table and walked back into the main area of the hospital, closing the door behind her.

It was the evening now, and Mayinga still refused to eat. Pierre kep trying to convince her, but she wouldn't do it. She would do nothing but lie on her bed, hardly moving all day.

"I saved some of my dinner for you..." Pierre said from across the room. "Please don't do this, don't just die on me..." Pierre was on the verge of tears. He couldn't bear losing her now.

"Don't bother. Thank you for thinking of me though." she said weakly.

"Mayinga.." he walked over and sat down on the edge of her bed. "I think of you more thank you'll ever know..." he sighed.

She looked up at him. "Y-you mean..."

"I love you." he looked into her eyes. He gentley brushed the hair back from her face.

"I...I love you too, Pierre..." she sat up, trembling slightly. Pierre kissed her softly and wrapped his arms around her.

"So will you promise me one thing?"

"What is it?"

"Don't give up...don't leave me alone here-please.."

She sighed, resting her head on him. "I'll try my best.."

"Are you alright? No signs of the fever...right..?"

"Not yet..I just haven't eaten all day so.." she closed her eyes. "I'll have something tomorrow morning. I'm to tired.."

"Sleep well, Mayinga.." he held her close to him, and for a moment they could forget where they were and what was going to happen to them. For the first time in days, they could truly rest-knowing they both had found a reason to keep going.

The next day Mayinga was feeling much better, though still terrified as anyone would be. The two of them talked about everything-friends and family they missed so much, everything they wished they could do but never would now, they laughed and cried together, they shared every emotion-and with every word grew closer to one another.

But they were scared beyond any means-it had been six days since exposure to the unknown virus. Symptoms usually began in a week-seven days.

"One day...then one...or both of us will..." Mayinga was thinking aloud, but she couldn't finish her thought. "We're going to beat it."

"How will we-"

"You know, if you really believe you can live, I'm sure you can."

Pierre sighed. "Now that's the Mayinga I know." he smiled at her, trying not to show his fear and sadness.

"I..." Mayinga looked down. "I'm still afraid...it's such an awful disease and...I have so much to live for.."

"Yes...so do I, now.." he paused a moment and looked at her. "I have you.." his voice trailed off, and he looked as if he was about to cry. Mayinga looked up at him. She put her arms around him to comfort him.

"Oh, Pierre..I don't want to die..." she let a few tears roll down her face, she'd been trying so hard to act like she was optomistic about the situation. She wasn't. They both knew too much about the virus to be. "At least...if there's life after death...we'll still be together..."

"We can only hope...why did I have to wait to tell you how I felt...it may have been too sudden, but if I'd known this was going to happen..."

"I've been thinking the same, my love."

The day continued on, and however much they wished time would stop, it did not. The seventh day came, and no matter how much Mayinga wished she didn't have a terrible migrane, she did. And she knew what it meant.

"How are you doing?" Pierre asked. "I don't have any symptoms yet."

"Uhh...neither do I." Mayinga said, turning away so Pierre couldn't see her eyes. She knew they were turning red.

"Maybe we lucked out. Maybe we don't have it." he looked over at her. "What's wrong?" She looked like she was in pain.

"No...it's...nothing." she smiled through the blinding pain behind her eyes. It hurt her to move her head, so she lay back down. "I'm just...tired...I.." she turned around and curled up into a ball, covering herself with the sheet. "I guess my head hurts a little...but...it's not.."

"Oh God, no..." Pierre whispered to himself.

"Don't worry about me..." she looked over to him and smiled. "I'll be fine."

"Now, don't be this way," he sighed. "you probably want some asprin, right? I'll go get it for you."

"Yeah...I...it hurts...a lot..."

"Oh, Mayinga, I'll go get you some asprin right away." he walked over to the medicine cabinet and got a few asprin for her.

"Thank you..." she took the medicine and lay back down again, closing her eyes.

"I'm here for you, Mayinga...you have to be strong..." he touched her hand lightly.

"I will...I promise."

The asprin relieved her pain slightly, but when it wore off her pain was worse. The only thing they could do was hope for the best. When Theofila came in occasionally to bring meals, she would always sit and talk with them for a few minutes. Today she could not stand seeing her friend so sick, so she only stayed a moment to prevent breaking down in front of them.

Mayinga could barely sleep that night-she just lay there in Pierre's arms, between torturing waves of pain and the thoughts of everyone and everything she would miss.

The day that followed was only worse-Mayinga's condition did not improve, and Pierre's symptoms were beginning. Theofila realized she would have to take care of them-so she called Mabia, Mayinga's sister who is also a nurse, to request her assistance.

"I was going to ask you if I could," Mabia said. "of course I will help."

Mayinga's spirits were lifted when she saw her sister. "Mabia, what are you doing here?" she smiled through her tears of happiness.

"I'm here to help you and Pierre, of course."

"Thank you, sister, but please be careful. We have the fever, you know..."

"Yes, a fever of 105! You need to get some rest." Mabia said, shocked by the high tempurature that she had taken.

"Ah yes, of course I do. Thank you for coming. Don't forget to get some rest yourself." she smiled, closing her eyes.

Despite his agonizing pain, that night after the nurses left, Pierre made his way over to Mayinga's bed. He sat down and took ehr hand in his. The ongoing, increasing ache was becoming unbearable for Mayinga. She was silently crying, unable to sleep. "Shh..it's going to be ok, Mayinga. I'm still here for you." his voice was shaky and hoarse.

She looked at him through the blur of her tears. "Pierre..? You...should...be.."

"I know, but while I can still walk I want to be with you whenever I can." he gentley wiped away the tears from her face and kissed her on the forehead.

Her pain was growing still worse, and by the next day she could no longer eat. It seemed the virus was advancing rapidly and there was no hope for either of them. Before long, Pierre's condition was just as bad as Mayinga's.

Two days passed, and right after she had barely been hanging on, Mayinga's condition slowly began to improve. Was she beating it? Or was she just delerious? She had said that her pain wasn't as bad. Mabia and Theo believed she was winning the war against the viral life form attempting to take over its host.

However, it could not be said that Pierre was so lucky.

By the time Mayinga was beginning to recover, Pierre was completely beyond the point of recovery. Mayinga spent most of her time beside him, begging him to fight it-to hold on to the little bits of life that still remained.

On the sixth day after his headache had begun, Pierre could no longer hold on. He told Mayinga, "I want you to live out your dreams-go to America, go to school, pretend this never happened...but remember that I love you."

"I love you, too..." she said to him.

"Goodbye..." with those last words he drifted off into a deep sleep, one from which he would never wake.

In a week, Mayinga had fully recovered and was released from quarentine. For the time being, her spirit was broken, and she didn't smile nearly as often as she used to, but she went to work, she filled out her papers to go to America, and she said her goodbyes as she departed on an airplane to finally go there. Eventually she regained her cheerful additude, but she never forgot those days in quarentine, and she never forgot Pierre Burine. She thought of him not as a victim of a disease, but a casualty of war-the struggle of humans versus microbes, that had been going on as long as anyone was alive.

_Fini._

A/N: Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it. Review please!


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